Editing Mike Connors (section)

===''Mannix''===
[[File:Mike Connors Gail Fisher Mannix 1970.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Connors with [[Gail Fisher]] in a publicity photo for ''Mannix'', 1970]]
Connors became best known for playing the [[private investigator]] Joe Mannix in the detective series ''[[Mannix]]''. The series ran for eight seasons from 1967 to 1975. During the first season of the series, Joe Mannix worked for Intertect, a large Los Angeles detective agency run by his superior Lew Wickersham ([[Joseph Campanella]]). From the second season onward, Mannix opened his own detective agency and is assisted by his secretary Peggy Fair ([[Gail Fisher]]).<ref name="Barnes hollywoodreporter"/>

''Mannix'' was originally produced by [[Desilu Productions]] (later absorbed by [[Paramount Television]]). Then-president [[Lucille Ball]] pushed for CBS to keep the show on the air by removing the high-tech computers and making Mannix an independent detective. This move enabled the show to become a long-running hit for the network.<ref name="Paul 2014">{{cite book |last=Paul |first=JoAnn M. |chapter=1 |title=And Now, Back to Mannix |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mlY_DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT26 |location=Duncan, Oklahoma |publisher=BearManor Media |isbn=978-1-59393-565-8 |date=2014}}</ref>
Connors performed his own stunts on the series. During the filming of the pilot episode, he broke his wrist and dislocated his shoulder.<ref name="Paul 2014"/>

Joe Mannix was an Armenian American, like Connors. He spoke [[Armenian language|Armenian]] in a number of episodes and often quoted Armenian proverbs.<ref name="Paul 2014"/>

In 1970, Connors won the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama|Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series Drama]]. He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award six times from 1970 to 1975 and was nominated for the [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series]] four times from 1970 to 1973.<ref name="Barnes hollywoodreporter"/>
[[File:Mike Connors Eddie Egan Mannix 1972.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Connors with [[Eddie Egan]] in a publicity photo for ''Mannix'', 1972]]
When discussing the success of the series in an interview, Connors stated: "The show itself started a whole new era of detective shows, because this wasn't the usual cynical private eye ''à la'' [[Humphrey Bogart]]. It was more a show about an all-round normal human being. The character of Joe Mannix could be taken advantage of by a pretty face, he could shed a tear on an emotional level, he was very close to his father and his family, so he was more a normal personality with normal behavior."<ref name="filmtalk 2015"/>

Connors was able to work with his boss Lucille Ball on-screen during a cross-promotion episode of her ''[[Here's Lucy]]'' series in 1971. The episode, which opened Lucy's fourth season, is titled "Lucy and Mannix are Held Hostage". This was notable as the first episode shot at Universal Studios, after Ball ceased producing her program at Paramount Studios.<ref name="Grode nytimes"/>

''Mannix'' remained a hit show through its final season.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bowie |first=Stephen |title=The long-running private eye series Mannix was brutal, stylish comfort food |work=[[The A.V. Club]] |date=May 27, 2014 |url=https://www.avclub.com/the-long-running-private-eye-series-mannix-was-brutal-1798268895 |access-date=January 28, 2017}}</ref> The show was taken off the air due to a dispute between CBS and Paramount.<ref name="filmtalk 2015"/> Paramount had sold the rights to air ''Mannix'' reruns to rival network ABC without informing CBS. When CBS discovered the deal, the executives quickly decided to cancel ''Mannix'' to avoid losing viewership for new episodes to the reruns.<ref>{{cite web |title=How Johnny Carson indirectly caused the death of 'Mannix' |website=[[MeTV]] |date=October 5, 2017 |url=https://www.metv.com/stories/how-johnny-carson-caused-the-death-of-mannix |access-date=October 5, 2017}}</ref>

He later reprised the role of Joe Mannix in a 1997 episode of ''[[Diagnosis: Murder]]'' and in the 2003 comedy film ''Nobody Knows Anything!''<ref name="Pedersen deadline">{{cite news |last=Pedersen |first=Erik |title=Mike Connors Dies: 'Mannix' Star Was 91 |work=[[Deadline Hollywood]] |date=January 26, 2017 |url=https://deadline.com/2017/01/mike-connors-dead-mannix-star-1201895325/ |access-date=January 27, 2017}}</ref>